Triton Advisers Said to Weigh Sale of Orion Carbons

Kiel Porter and Ruth David

March 21, 2014, 7:13 AM EDT

Private-equity firms Triton Advisers Ltd. and Rhone Capital LLC are speaking with banks about a possible sale of German manufacturer Orion Engineered Carbons Holdings GmbH, said three people with knowledge of the matter.

Orion, which makes carbon black used for tires and printing inks, is considering an initial public offering in Frankfurt or a sale, the people said, asking not to be identified as the details aren’t public. A sale could value the company at 1.5 billion euros ($2 billion), one of the people said. No final decision has been made, they said.

Jimmy Choo owner Labelux and Steinhoff International Holdings are among businesses considering European IPOs, people with knowledge of the matter said this month. The value of IPOs in the region climbed about fourfold to $14 billion compared with the same period in 2013, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

For the latest quarter, Frankfurt-based Orion reported revenue of 312.6 million euros and a net loss of 16.8 million euros, according to its website. For the year, the company had revenue of 1.3 billion euros.

Evonik Industries AG sold its carbon black unit to Triton and Rhone in 2011 in a transaction valued at more than 900 million euros. Orion operates in more than 100 countries and has a production capacity of 1.4 million tons, according to its website.

Spokesmen for Triton and Orion declined to comment on the process. A spokesman for New York-based Rhone didn’t respond to requests seeking comment.

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